Paul Levinson's Blog: Levinson at Large, page 66
March 26, 2022
Podcast Review of Severance 1.7
Welcome to Light On Light Through, Episode 268, in which I review Severance episode 1.7 on Apple TV+.
Written blog post review of Severance 1.7
podcast reviews of Severance: 1.1-1.2... 1.3... 1.4... 1.5 ...1.6
Paul Levinson's books ... Paul Levinson's music
March 25, 2022
Severance 1.7: Overtime Contingency
[Spoilers in the first paragraph and after ... ]
The excellent episode 1.7 of Severance is entitled "Defiant Jazz" -- a fine title, which comes from the scene in which Helly is rewarded for her fine work with a music and dance time, and she chooses "Defiant Jazz," and Dylan attacks Milchick, biting him in the arm -- but I would've gone with "Overtime Contingency" for the title, because ...
Well, that's what happened to Dylan last week, when his outie was awoken in the middle of the night, at home. The name for that outrageous intrusion is "overtime contingency," and since just about everything in the the severance creation of innies and outies is an outrageous intrusion on the people severed -- even though the hype (which Mark bought) is that it brings peace of mind -- that title would have worked very well for this episode.
And this episode was packed with other discomforting goodies:
Mark meets the woman who undid Petey's severance. She tells Mark that Petey died, not from the reintegration, but because he didn't follow the prescribed recovery procedure, whatever exactly that is. And --She kills head of security Graner -- good riddance -- and gives Mark his ID card.Back on the severed flaw, Dylan has his best night (biting Milchick) and so does Irving, telling off Milchick because Irving is upset that Burt is retiring. (If I was the writer, I probably would've named Irving "Ernie.")And why is Burt retiring? Probably because the Board is aware of his and Irving's budding relationship, and doesn't want that to happen.And just for good measure, the Board wants to see Harmony "next week" -- presumably that would be in next week's episode? I hope so, though time proceeds in an odd way in this series, which adds to its unsettling edge.And, in any case, I'll see you back here next week, with my review of the next episode.See also Severance 1.1-1.2: Erving Goffman Meets The Prisoner ... Severance 1.3: The History and the Neighbor ... Severance 1.4: Deadly Ambiguity ... Severance 1.5: Second Lives ... Severance 1.6: Lumon on the Outside
The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey 4: Ptolemy's Fate
It was good to see Ptolemy in top intellectual form throughout the whole episode #4 of The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey on Apple TV+. This ranged from putting the cops who came knocking of the door of his apartment in their place, to coming to terms with Hilly, to pretty much figuring out who killed his nephew.
With only two more episodes to go of this fine series, the big question remains of how long will Ptolemy stay in possession of his razor-sharp mind, and his intellectual capacities even better than just restored. Dr. Rubin aka Satan says he honestly doesn't know, because Ptolemy was so strong, so receptive to the restorative treatment, in the first place.
We should also bear in the mind that we see Ptolemy about to end his life in the very first scene of the series. But, of course, that's a far cry from his actually taking his own life, rather than his being obliged to be a helpless witness to his own deterioration. I'm ever the optimist, so here's what I'm hoping to see (I haven't read Walter Mosley's novel, so I don't know how that ended).
I'd like to see Ptolemy, with his still superior intelligence, figure out how he can make his enormous intellectual improvement permanent. Is that too much to ask? We live in a world in which our fictions more often than not have unhappy endings. But Ptolemy realizing what he can do to extend the ascendance of his mind is not implausible.
I'm also wondering what else Dr. Rubin might have up his sleeve. Has he been 100% truthful with Ptolemy? We have no reason to think that he has not, at least so far. I think he would certainly be amenable if Ptolemy were to come up with some ideas about how to extend his mental surge.
I'll see you here next week, with some thoughts on how Ptolemy's path progresses.
See also The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey 1-3: In Flowers for Algernon Territory
Paul Levinson's books ... Paul Levinson's musicPicard 2.4: 2024 LA
I guess my favorite -- and there were many close contenders -- is Picard and a much younger Guinan. This conversation, in which Picard eventually tells young Guinan his name, explains some of the comfort and familiarity she has with him in Star Trek: The Next Generation, when he and we were more than thirty years younger. As you know, I very much like time weaves like that.
On the other side of the profundity/light-hearted spectrum, I thought Seven and Raffi in that car, with Seven driving and Raffi coaching, doing their best to get away from the police, was hilarious. And you can't beat the way the two made good their escape -- Agnes beaming them out of the car. (Good thing, the car had to stop for the beaming to work -- had the two been beamed out while Seven was driving, that would left a car going 100-miles-per-hour, with no driver. Pretty dangerous.)
Speaking of Agnes -- my least favorite part of this episode was Agnes and the Borg Queen. This is no one's fault. The Borg creep me out. And I'd almost rather not see what might happen to Agnes. Here's to her not being assimilated or whatever nice word the Borg Queen might come up with.
So the season's moving along well. I'm still annoyed by the commercial breaks -- I mean, to have to subscribe to a service and still get commercials just doesn't seem right. (Does Hulu do that, too?). But it's a measure of how good Star Trek: Picard is that I'm putting up with it. And I'll see you back here next week with my review of the next episode.
See also Picard 2.3: Agnes, Borg, Badge ... Picard 2.2: Q and Borg ... Star Trek: Picard 2.1: Cameos and Time Travel ... Star Trek: Picard (Season One): Non-Pareil
a little time travel story -- free
March 23, 2022
Podcast Review of The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey 1-3
Welcome to Light On Light Through, Episode 267, in which I review The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey, episodes 1-3, on Apple TV+
Written blog post review of these three episodes
Paul Levinson's books ... Paul Levinson's music
March 22, 2022
The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey 1-3: In Flowers for Algernon Territory
I figured I'd catch up with the first three episodes of The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey on Apple TV+, and I'm very glad I did. I mean, how you can you go wrong with a Walter Mosley novel (which I haven't read), adapted to the screen by him too, and starring Samuel L. Jackson in the title role? You can't.
So, how good is this series, which tells the story of Ptolemy Grey, suffering from progressing dementia, given an antidote (science fictional, we don't really have that at present) which allows him to recover all of his memories, but not permanently? Well, the high watermark of that kind of story is of course Daniel Keyes' 1959 "Flowers for Algernon," which I read as a kid shortly after it was published and still think is one of the best things I've ever read. And, based on these first three of six episodes of The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey -- I wish there were more -- I'd say it's certainly in same ballpark as "Flowers for Algernon".
In addition to the emotionally wrenching story of getting one's mind back only to lose it, The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey is also a murder mystery. One of Ptolemy's main motives is find out who killed his nephew, the clues to whom being buried in his mind. And there's also remembering what happened to the love of his life, a new romantic possibility, and other puzzles for Ptolemy.
In addition to Jackson, there's fine acting all around, including Dominique Fishback are Robyn (who takes care of Ptolemy after his nephew is killed) and Walter Goggins as the scientist who administers the magic potion. There's so much going on here it's a good bet that the concluding three episodes will be as packed with memorable scenes as the first three.
I'll be reviewing each of them after I see them. See you back here with my review of episode #4 after I see this Friday,
March 21, 2022
The Name "Fox News" Is a Form of False Advertising
I decided to follow through with what I've saying on social media about the very name Fox "News" being a form of false advertising, and I filed this formal report/complaint to the Federal Trade Commission) which investigates instances of False Advertising:
The Fox News Channel ubiquitously advertises itself as Fox "News". But since the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Fox has broadcast Russian propaganda about the war, not just news. On March 18, 2022, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Russia Today (a Russian TV network): 'If you take the United States, only Fox News is trying to present some alternative point of view" about the Russian invasion of Ukraine.' Americans who are seeking the news are being victimized by False Advertising every time they see or hear the name Fox News. A more truthful name for this cable channel would be ?Fox Russian Propaganda".Paul Levinson's books ... Paul Levinson's music
March 20, 2022
Windfall: Hitchcock's Shoelaces
Checking in with a review of Windfall, a consciously Hitchcockian movie -- especially through the opening credits and music -- just up on Netflix a few days now. I'm a big fan of Hitchcock's work, so I don't mind anything that does a good job of capturing his ambience, which Windfall admirably does.
The other distinguishing characteristic of Windfall is that it has just three stars, all playing unnamed characters, and a fourth character, a co-star, billed in the credits as gardener. And that's ok, too, because the characters are all memorable. They would the very rich husband (Jesse Plemons) and wife (Lily Collins), the man who breaks into their home (Jason Segel), and the aforementioned gardener (Omar Leyva). And the last thing I'll mention before I warn you about spoilers is that there's a touch of black comedy lurking around a lot of this story, and the character with the most charm is that the man who breaks in.
Ok, that's two things, and here's your warning: [Spoilers ahead ... ]
Actually, all I want to talk about is the ending, in which the wife kills the burglar, as he stops to tie his ever-loose shoelace* and leave with the satchel of money, and then goes on (the wife, that is) to shoot her husband to death. Now, I get why she kills her husband. She's put up with his self-absorption for two days -- the burglar and his presence throwing an ugly spotlight on that -- and she's been revealed to her husband (by the burglar) as taking birth control pills even though he wants a baby. So I get why, after all she's been through, she wants to set herself totally free by killing him. *I've long thought life is too short for shoelaces -- I wear crocs -- and it stuck me as notable that shoelaces ended this burglar's life.
But what gets her to first kill the burglar? I see two possible reasons: 1. She doesn't want him to abscond with all of her and her husband's money (which, if she had any inkling that she would then kill her husband, would soon be all hers). Or, was it: 2. She was afraid that the burglar, after walking out the door with the money, was going to turn around, walk back in, and kill her and her husband? He had indeed left, or been on the verge of leaving, and then turned around and walked back into the house, many times before.
Or maybe both of those motives came into play. What's clear is that her burst of lethal energy, whether born of greed or self-preservation, was a suitably shocking conclusion to this narrowly drawn criminal drama in a sunny California orange grove. Hats off to director and writer Charlie McDowell, and writers Jason Segel (yes, the burglar) and Jason Lader.
Podcast Review of Star Trek: Picard 2.3
Welcome to Light On Light Through, Episode 266, in which I review Star Trek: Picard 2.3 on Paramount+
written blog post review of Star Trek: Picard 2.3
podcast review of Star Trek: Picard 2.2
podcast review of Star Trek: Picard 2.1
podcast review of Star Trek: Picard season 1
a little time travel story -- free Paul Levinson's books ... Paul Levinson's music
Picard 2.3: Agnes, Borg, Badge
An excellent Star Trek: Picard 2.3 up on Paramount Plus. The whole episode was crackling and fun, but my two favorite parts were Agnes and the Borg, and what happened with Cristóbal's badge.
[Spoilers ahead ... ]
Let's start Agnes. Having anything to do with the Borg, let alone being partially assimilated, is always a very dangerous undertaking, to say the least. Picard's saying no to Agnes's wanting to do that with the Borg Queen, to help locate the "Watcher," makes perfect sense, and I'm not sure I would have given in to Agnes's request as soon as Picard did. But the plot and the pace demanded it.
And, of course, the net result, in terms of its lasting effect on Agnes, is ambiguous. She broke free of the Queen, but she and we and Picard know that, as a result of that partial assimilation, there might well be something of the Borg still in Agnes's brain, mind, soul, whatever you want to call it. No, I'd say that's a 100% fact, and it will be very interesting to see how that plays out in the episodes ahead.
Meanwhile, the interlude in 2024 Los Angeles is so far Star Trek at its very best. As readers of this blog will know, time travel is my favorite genre -- as a reader, viewer, and author. And Star Trek, ranging from "City on the Edge of Forever" to "Yesterday's Enterprise" has hit some really high, transcending notes in its time travel stories. Raffie, Seven of Nine, and Cristóbal all make the leap back to 2024 LA. There are some enjoyably witty scenes with Raffie and Seven of Nine -- Raffie of course has better knowledge of our current time than does Seven of Nine -- but the most important part, for a bunch of reasons, is with Cristóbal.
He gets hurt when he lands in his past/our slight future, and finds himself in a healthcare facility. It looks like there's a little romance brewing there -- always nice to see -- but the single most significant event that happens in that sector of our story is Cristóbal loses his badge. And he can't seem to get it back.
Now you just know that badge from the future is going to end up in some significant character's hands -- significant, that is, to the whole Star Trek oeuvre. I can't wait to see who that it is, and how that ties into the whole Star Trek story, across all series and movies.
In the meantime, I'll see you back here next week with my review of the next episode.
See also Picard 2.2: Q and Borg ... Star Trek: Picard 2.1: Cameos and Time Travel ... Star Trek: Picard (Season One): Non-Pareil
a little time travel story -- free
Levinson at Large
- Paul Levinson's profile
- 342 followers
